Wagner Chief Prigozhin Was in Deadly Jet Crash, Russia Says
- Biden says he wouldn’t be surprised if Prigozhin is dead
- Mercenary group founder led uprising in June that shook Russia
Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led an abortive mutiny two months ago that shook President Vladimir Putin’s rule, was on a private jet that crashed Wednesday killing everyone aboard, Russian aviation authorities said.
No cause was announced but the crash immediately raised suspicions that Prigozhin had been killed. Putin had denounced the June rebellion as “treason,” but the mercenary leader had appeared to escape immediate retaliation by the Kremlin under a deal brokered to end the revolt as his fighters came within 200 kilometers (124 miles) of Moscow. Questions about his fate have swirled in the two months since the mutiny, with US officials speculating he might wind up dead.